


Ghosts in the Machine

by WotanAnubis



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Cybernetics, F/F, Possible Body Horror, Psychic Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 10:54:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21252224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WotanAnubis/pseuds/WotanAnubis
Summary: In which Edelgard is more than what she was made to be.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> What if _Fire Emblem: Three Houses_ was science fiction and also even more horrifying?

The noise of Hubert's bootheels on the metal floor as he walked to the door of the _Hresvelg_'s Central Processing Chamber was the only sound besides the regular background noise of a starship in operation. Two guards waited for him at the door, their faces obscured by their helmets. Their presence was purely decorative. If the _Hresvelg_ didn't want him here, he would not be here. If the _Hresvelg_ wanted him dead, he would be dead.

The door slid open at Hubert's approach, allowing him the enter the Chamber beyond without breaking his stride.

The Central Processing Chamber was small, and dark. There were a few dim light for the convenience of the occasional visitor or 'maintenance worker'. At the center of the Chamber was a huge and grotesque mass of machinery, wires, and cables. The cables and wires were all plugged into the Central Processing Unit - a very slim, very pale figure. The figure was dressed in a plain jumpsuit, because the people who had done this to her cared about decency.

Hubert bowed. "Lady Edelgard."

There was no response, and he had not expected one. Nobody had ever bothered teaching Edelgard life's little formalities.

Hubert was not opposed to cybernetics. A great many lives had been improved by artificial eyes, or limbs, or lungs, or what have you. These days it was considered quite immoral for a child not that have some immunity implants. And he did not particularly object to his own, more specialised, implants which allowed him to communicate directly with the AI of his own ship, the _Vestra_.

But then some people had started wondering. A ship having both an AI to do all the processing and a Captain to make all the decisions was so wasteful. There were so many valuable seconds between data and decision. Starships could be so much more effective if the AI and the Captain were the same person.

Early efforts had been disastrous. Turning a fully formed human brain into a ship's computer simply did not work. The subject invariable went insane as they became overwhelmed with the streams of inhuman data. Even now, those maddened ships still wandered the void, attacking anything that came near, probably in the hopes of finally dying.

But what about an unformed human brain? What if the Mind/Machine Integration started from the moment of birth? What if the child grew up being a ship's computer? Would that work?

Two ships had been built for that experiment, the _Hresvelg_ and the _Ordelia_. They had become the finest starships in known space, easily outmatching every other ship out there.

One could look at these successful experiments and draw one out of two conclusions. One could decide the sacrifices were worth the payoff or one could decide to hang on to some shred of conscience.

"Lady Edelgard," Hubert said as he rose, "the fleet has changed course."

_Yes._

Edelgard spoke directly into Hubert's head. He wasn't at all sure if she could actually speak. After all, what use would a Central Processing Unit have for vocal cords? Instead, it was assumed Edelgard interfaced directly with Hubert's own implants. Hubert himself had some doubts about this assumption, but it was the only explanation that made logical sense.

"Might I inquire what the new heading is and why we're heading there?"

_The_ Ordelia_ was ambushed near Gronder VI._

"I see."

Hubert quietly queried his ship for the _Ordelia_'s planned flight path. The _Vestra_ dutifully beamed the revelant information into his eyes. It seemed the _Ordelia_ should have passed Gronder VI about twelve hours ago.

Hubert did not ask how Edelgard knew what had happened at Gronder VI twelve hours ago. It was impossible for her to know. Messages could take weeks or months to cross the vast interstellar distances. These days, the fastest way to send an interstellar message was by starship.

And yet, she knew.

"Are we heading there to lend combat support?" he asked instead.

_Unnecessary. The enemy has been destroyed._

"That is good news," Hubert said. "But then why are we heading there?"

_The_ Ordelia_ was damaged during the fight. We are heading there to repair her and return our other self to us._

"Really? Was the _Ordelia_ so badly damaged that they need us to go there and assist in repairs?"

_No. However, repairs will be completed much faster with our assistance._

"Ah. I see."

There was a brief moment of silence. It would have been awkward if either of them had ever been prone to awkwardness.

"Considering, then, that the _Ordelia_ is in no real danger, is it not wiser for us to continue on our planned course and rendezvous with Captain Lorenz? He is, after all, willing to dedicate his ships to our cause and it would make for a poor first impression if we neglected him in favour of a ship that doesn't need our help."

**WE WILL NOT ABANDON OUR OTHER SELF.**

Hubert fell to his knees. They were not words. They had not been communicated by a ship to his implants. They were physical blows to his body. He felt them in his very bones.

"I would not dream of suggesting such a thing, Lady Edelgard," Hubert croaked. "However... is it really necessary for the _entire_ fleet to go support the _Ordelia_? Perhaps it would be better to send a few support ships while the rest of the fleet makes to rendezvous with the _Gloucester_?"

_And we suppose the _Hresvelg_ cannot be one of those support ships?_

"The flagship does need to be there when we make contact with Captain Lorenz," Hubert said. "I'm sorry."

_So are we._

Hubert got back to his feet and dusted himself off. There wasn't actually any dust anywhere, but the simple action helped him regain his composure.

_The _Hevring_, _Edmund_, and _Essar_ will continue on their way to support the _Ordelia_. The rest of the fleet has resumed its previous course and will rendezvous with the _Gloucester_._

Hubert bowed. "Thank you, Lady Edelgard."

Behind him, the doors out of the Central Processing Chamber slid open. Hubert turned to leave, but stopped when Edelgard spoke into his head.

_We recognise that we must make sacrifices to make sure what was done to us and our other self will never happen again. But remember this, Hubert, we shall never sacrifice our other self. If we must, we shall sacrifice everything and everyone if it means keeping Lysithea safe._

Hubert nodded curtly. "Of course, Lady Edelgard."


	2. Chapter 2

_We shall sacrifice everything and everyone if it means keeping Lysithea safe._

It wasn't true. Not entirely.

Edelgard stood in the waving grass, her white dress fluttering in the wind. She could feel the soil under her bare feet and the heat of the sun on her face. Birds fluttered in the gloriously blue sky.

She'd never been on a planet. She'd been born in a shipyard and then hooked up to what was going to be the _Hresvelg_. The closest she'd ever come to being on a planet was when her- the _Hresvelg_'s shuttles had set down on one.

But... she was pretty sure that grass looked like this and sunshine felt like this. And if it was only a dream, then at least it was a good one.

There was a single tree in this endless grassy field. It was gnarled and ancient, its broad branches were covered in green leaves that cast ever-shifting shadows in the breeze and the sun. It was only a plant and yet it moved more than Edelgard did.

Edelgard walked towards the tree. She didn't have to. This wasn't a real place. She could be beneath that tree by thinking it. But she liked walking, even if it was only in a dream. It made her feel like a human being.

Byleth, Captain of the _Remire_, waited for her, in the shadow of the tree. She sat against the trunk, her eyes fixed on some distant point, a faint smile on her face.

Edelgard didn't understand Byleth. It was quite possible she didn't understand anyone, except Lysithea. But she understood Byleth even less.

Whenever anyone walked her- the _Hresvelg_'s corridors, Edelgard could was aware of every intimate detail. She could see what they did, hear what the said. She monitored their heartbeat, hormone levels, brain activity, and so much more. She didn't particularly want to do this, but she had no choice. Her sensors fed her the data no matter what.

Except Byleth. Byleth was a void. She could see Byleth, and she could hear Byleth. But only when Byleth was in the chamber where her flesh was kept. Otherwise she was blind and deaf to her.

And yet, Byleth was also here, in the dream.

Edelgard lay down next to Byleth. Without speaking, Byleth lay an arm around her and drew her close. Edelgard had no idea if actual human bodies were as warm and soft and comforting as Byleth's was in the dream. But if it was a lie, it was one she was willing to believe for now.

"Byleth?" Edelgard asked.

"Hmm?"

"You've been on planets, haven't you?"

"Yes."

"Were any of them as beautiful as this?"

Byleth was quiet for a long time. Then, "I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"There were some that looked like this. I don't know if they were beautiful."

"How could you not decide if they were beautiful or not?" Edelgard asked.

"I didn't know about beauty, until I met you."

From anyone else, that might have been a hollow attempt at flattery. Edelgard knew Byleth meant it literally. She shivered.

Byleth stroked Edelgard's hair in long, gentle strokes. "Don't worry about it. I don't."

"How can you not worry about such things?" Edelgard asked. "It's obvious you're not..." she paused, unsure of how to proceed.

"A human being?" Byleth suggested.

"You are a human being," Edelgard snapped. "Just as I am. Just as Lysithea. We're not ships."

"I was never a ship," Byleth said. "But I don't think I was born as you were. So perhaps..."

"You are a human being," Edelgard insisted.

A brief, sharp chuckle escaped Byleth's lips. "Alright. If you say so."

Edelgard sighed. "I can't believe you're making light of this."

"I'm here with you now," Byleth said. "That's good enough for me."

"And one day," Edelgard said, "it'll be our real bodies lying under a real tree."

"Yes," said Byleth.

"The three of us, right?"

Edelgard looked up in startled amazement. She'd hadn't noticed Lysithea entering the dream. She'd _always_ noticed her other self.

Byleth looked as undisturbed as always. She raised her other arm.

"Feel like cosying up as well?"

"Well," Lysithea said, with faked unconcern, "if you insist."

Lysithea curled up next to Byleth. She reached for Edelgard across Byleth, leaving her hand roughly halfway across the Captain's bare stomach. Edelgard reached for Lysithea in turn. Their fingers entwined, their hands resting on Byleth's skin.

Lysithea sighed. "This is nice."

"It is," Edelgard agreed. "When all this is over, I think I could spend an entire afternoon just lazing around with the two of you. An entire day, even."

"Sounds good. Although, to be honest, I wouldn't mind having some sweets as well. Just lazing around might get boring otherwise, you know."

"Of course there'll be sweets. As many as you like," said Edelgard. "But how do you know you like sweets?"

"Oh, I don't know," Lysithea said. "But they're so nice and colourful. They must be good. Better than the nutrient paste that gets injected into my flesh, anyway."

"I've had sweets," Byleth volunteered.

"Really? How were they?"

"Good," she said thoughtfully. "But when I ate more, eventually I got sick of them?"

"Sick?" said Lysithea. "Sick of _sweets_? Were they poisoned?"

"No," said Byleth.

"How odd," said Lysithea. "I'm definitely going to experiment with that when I'm free."

Edelgard chuckled.

"What?" Lysithea asked.

"Oh, nothing," said Edelgard. "I just... I wonder what the other Captains might think if they could hear us now."

"Who cares?" said Lysithea. "This is _our_ place. We can be whoever we like here."

"You're right," said Edelgard.

Edelgard breathed in deeply. They could be whoever they liked here. A pity it was only a dream. But one day... one day... She'd lie beneath a real tree and hold Lysithea's real hand and rest against Byleth's real body and on that day...

The door the Central Processing Chamber slid open and two maintenance workers walked in to replace the nutri-tubes keeping Edelgard's flesh alive.

Edelgard rested her head on Byleth's chest and started humming a tune. There were no words, no real melody, but it seemed to come from some place deep inside of her, where the machine had never quite been able to reach.

"That's nice," said Byleth.

"Hmm," Lysithea agreed.


End file.
